


Ring Around

by tanyart



Series: Like Pillars Four [3]
Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-09-22
Updated: 2011-09-22
Packaged: 2017-11-15 04:36:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/523214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tanyart/pseuds/tanyart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ezio breaks up with Cristina, and Desmond worries for his older brother.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ring Around

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Like Pillars Four](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/11750) by Endy. 



It starts with Ezio’s break-up with Cristina Vespucci.  
  
It happens during Desmond’s third year, Ezio’s sixth, and even though Desmond has dealt with a lot of teenage drama, angst, and general stupidity since starting Hogwarts, he feels no less ready when both Rosa and Caterina corner him in the hallway, taking his hands and leaning close enough for him to smell the cherry lipgloss Rosa wears and count the freckles over Caterina’s cheeks.  
  
He blushes and says hello and wonders why two of the most popular sixth years are talking to him.  He tries to channel Ezio’s nonchalant confidence, but it doesn’t really matter when Rosa gets right down to business in her usual blunt manner.  
  
“We’re worried about Ezio,” she says, and, okay, Desmond’s  _never_  going to try channeling Ezio again.  
  
And, the thing is, Desmond is used to other girls (and sometimes guys) attempting to weed out information about Ezio—his likes, dislikes, and even class schedules.  He clenches his jaw, throwing the girls a disdainful look.  He had  _thought_  Rosa and Caterina had been close friends with Ezio—one of the few girls who actually cared, and didn’t want to get into Ezio’s pants.  
  
“Yeah,” he says, backing away from their overwhelming proximity, because he  _knows_  Ezio is  _heartbroken_ , and he hates that he doesn’t know anything other than Ezio’s curt assurances that the break-up is mutual, quiet, and, most of all,  _final_.  
  
But anyone, especially Desmond, can tell that both Ezio and Cristina are completely miserable without each other, and if Caterina and Rosa can’t see it, then Desmond is tempted to point it out in the harshest way possible.  
  
“We don’t understand,” Caterina goes on to say, stopping him from saying anything for the moment.  “He and Cristina, well—if I actually believed in that sort of stuff— I would have thought they’d get married as soon as they graduated.  I’m worried about him, and he won’t talk to us about it.”  
  
“And you’ve seen him in the common room,” Rosa adds, brow knitting.  “He stays up late, working on assignments, and he’s not eating as much.”  
  
Desmond parts his lips to let out a silent ‘oh’ in understanding.  He ducks his head, glad to be proven wrong on this point.And this is even before Antonio catches sight of them in the hallway and joins their hushed conversation.  Desmond can’t remember if he and Rosa are siblings, but he  _does_  know that Antonio is a good friend of Ezio’s.  
  
“You two seem pretty close, and we know he takes family seriously,” Antonio says, griping Desmond’s shoulder.  “I think you should try talking to him.”  
  
“Oh!” says another voice behind them, and Leo walks up, carrying an armful of books and stacks of parchment.  “Is this about Ezio?” he asks anxiously.  
  
And, well, what else is Desmond supposed to do?  
  
——  
  
It’s not as if he hasn’t already tried multiple times to comfort Ezio in his own way.  He brings Ezio food and drinks when his older brother can’t be bothered to go to the Great Hall, and he even tries  _talking_ , awkward fumbling advice from a thirteen year-old and sincere words of encouragement and  _everything_.  The attempts help, a little, and more than once Desmond’s been able to wrestle out a grin from Ezio.  
  
Still, it doesn’t change the fact that Ezio is throwing himself into his studies for long stretches of time, working at a determined, one-track pace  .It has been a total of three weeks, and Lucy points out that if the late nights, less food, and long working hours continue, Ezio could be in trouble, if he isn’t already.  
  
Desmond is at a lost, and the second he wishes Altair was still at Hogwarts is the second he realizes that the situation has become  _desperate_.  
  
He waffles around for a bit, sitting on his bed with a book resting against his knees as a makeshift table for his papers.  Letting the quill twirl between his fingers, Desmond thinks long and hard, the feathered tip tickling his chin.  Finally, he writes a letter that is rather long by his standards, borrows Rebecca’s jittery owl the next morning, and sends it on its way.  
  
Two days later, Desmond gets his reply, though to his surprise, the letter is not from Altair, but from Malik.Baby hoots at him, dropping the envelope on his head before flying back to the owlery.  He pushes his breakfast plate away, tearing the letter open.  
  
It doesn’t take long to read, mostly because Malik’s writing is large and few in words like ‘ALTAIR IS AN IDIOT.’  
  
Also; ‘HE SENT A HOWLER TO CHEER EZIO UP.’  
  
And finally; ‘I DOUBT IT WILL HELP.’  
  
P.S. _; ‘_ TAKE EZIO AND RUN.’  
  
With a long and earnest exclamation of a four-lettered word that probably docks Gryffindor of at least twenty points, Desmond leaps from his seat and takes off to the other end of the table.As he runs, he glances up and  _sees_  Altair’s snowy white owl glide into the Great Hall, a scarlet envelope dangling from its claws and heading towards Ezio fast.  
  
“Oh god,” Desmond breaths, even as he yanks Ezio’s collar to drag his older brother to his feet.  
  
“Augh,” Ezio says, which is not exactly a refusal to start running, so Desmond smacks the unfinished muffin from Ezio’s hand and pulls.  
  
To his credit, Ezio’s instincts are sharp, and his trust in his little brother is even greater.  He abandons his spot at the table, ignoring the confused shouts of his friends, and runs alongside Desmond, gripping the boy’s smaller hand as they sprint outside the Great Hall.  
  
“I don’t get why this is happening!” he shouts, glancing over his shoulder, and Desmond assumes that Ezio sees Altair’s owl and the ominous red letter by now; Ezio pace quickens and soon it’s  _him_  dragging Desmond behind him.  “Oh, Christ, it’s just like [that time](http://tanyartblog.livejournal.com/36353.html#cutid1) he sent Malik a Howler to ask him out on a date.”  
  
Desmond wheezes and nearly stumbles from secondhand mortification  “He did  _what_.”  
  
Ezio laughs, a little hysterical.He pats the front of his robes for his wand.  “Yeah.  And what’s really funny about it is that Malik said  _yes_.”  
  
“What.”  
  
“With his own Howler, obviously.”  
  
“ _God_.”  
  
“I know.  I  _know_.”  
  
  
  
  
They run outside on the school grounds, the morning dew clinging to their shoes and making the ends of their robes damp.  Desmond can see the fog drifting out from the Forbidden Forest, and he thinks that Ezio would rather face the unknown darkness than whatever Altair has to rant at him for.  
  
“ _Accio Any Broom That Is Closest To Me_ ,” Ezio recites, making the appropriate gesture with his wand.  
  
“Does it even work like that?” Desmond pants, but it isn’t long before a serviceable broom comes zipping towards them from the opposite direction.  
  
Ezio hops on and Desmond doesn’t even think twice about grabbing on to Ezio’s outstretched hand to sit behind him.He holds on tight to the back of Ezio’s robes as they kick off from the ground and tear through the air.  
  
“Are we going to run away from this Howler forever?” Desmond asks somewhat humorously over the sound of air sweeping by.  He has never gotten a Howler before, but he’s seen other people get them.  The angry letters seem impossible to avoid or ignore.  
  
“If it were possible I would,” Ezio replies with a loud sigh.  He is a graceful and fast flyer, even with Desmond as a passenger.  The owl is a little ways behind them now, probably pissed and hooting in frustration.Risking another look over his shoulder,  Ezio starts to slow his pace, circling above the Gryffindor Tower, much to Desmond’s surprise.  
  
“Well, this should be private enough,” Ezio says, and it’s the first time Desmond has heard him sound so optimistic since Cristina.  
  
He is quiet when Ezio lands on top of the tower with a gentle bump of feet against the tiled roof.  Desmond slides off the broom, looking around curiously and strangely unafraid of the height he stands at.  
  
It takes a few more moments for Altair’s owl to catch up to them.  Squawking angrily, it lands next to them, feathers ruffled in agitation, and it pointedly holds out a claw, refusing to move any further.  Kneeling down, Ezio takes the Howler, earning a series of sharp nips on his fingers.  
  
“Sorry about that,” Ezio says, reaching into his pocket for a tiny piece of jerky.He relinquishes the treat and that’s enough incentive for the bird to allow him to pat it on the head before it flies off and disappears into the distance.  
  
Desmond pads over and squats down, hissing in sympathy when Ezio holds the burning Howler between his fingers.  The older Gryffindor falls back with a resigned thump, but his jaw clenches and eyes flash in what Desmond recognizes as annoyance and anger.  
  
“He probably means well,” Desmond says, feeling a little guilty for sending Altair a letter in the first place.  Though it was never a good idea to get on the bad side of the only person with a broom on a very high tower, a part of him thinks that Altair’s Howler is justifiable, given the amount of failed cajoling Desmond had to do.  
  
The Howler trembles in Ezio’s hand and Ezio doesn’t have time to respond as he is forced to rip open the envelope, dropping it when it begins to smoke and steam.  A letter flutters out, revealing simplistic narrowed eyes and a mouth set into a displeased scowl.  It resembles Altair in a way, but Desmond guesses it’s only because of Altair’s voice that comes yelling out from it.  
  
And he has heard Altair shout before, and he has seen Altair angry – but Altair isn’t the sort of person to go on long-winded rants.  Desmond half-expects the screaming to be done and over within a matter of seconds, telling Ezio to quit being sad and get over it.  
  
Desmond ends up being half-right.  
  
Altair’s voice thunders in front of them like a physical gust of wind.  He rants at length about  _why did it take three weeks for him to find out,_  and  _quit making Desmond worry,_ and  _quit making everyone worry_ , and somewhere in between, there’s the quiet implication that  _he’s here, just say the word and he’ll come to make things better_  – which, to be honest, sounds more like a threat to everyone else rather than a promise to Ezio.  
  
He doesn’t mention Cristina at all, only to ‘fucking eat something’ and ‘I’m running out of things to say, but I’ll keep on sending Howlers until you do.’  With that, the letter closes its gaping mouth and disintegrates into a pile of foul-smelling ashes over Ezio’s lap.  
  
“What an asshole,” Ezio says, after a long while, but he looks and sounds numb.  
  
“Pretty much,” Desmond agrees, drawing his knees up.He waits for Ezio gather his thoughts.  
  
There probably isn’t much to gather, though, because Altair has always been straight to the point.Ezio drops his head in his hands, rubbing his temples.  
  
“God, I’m exhausted,” he mutters.  With a deep breath, he rises to his feet, offering a hand up for Desmond.  
  
Taking it, Desmond pushes himself up and steadies his footing on slanted angle.He reaches from the broom, wrenching it from Ezio’s grasp.  
  
“Then I’ll fly,” he insists, swinging his leg over the handle, and scoots up to make room.  
  
For a brief moment, Ezio looks amused, but he nods and sits behind him, wrapping his arms around Desmond’s chest in a hug that doesn’t quite let off until they fly back down and land safely back on the ground.


End file.
